Wet track on Saturday morning(GMM) It rained overnight in Barcelona and the track was wet on Saturday morning when the new GP3 cars were running.

But at the same time the sun was shining and drying the Circuit de Catalunya surface, amid forecasts for almost certain rain on Saturday and also Sunday.

"This weekend will be about qualifying position and the way the weather turns out to be on Sunday," said Force India's chief engineer Dominic Harlow.

Pirelli applies to be sole tire supplier(GMM) Pirelli has submitted an official application to supply tires to formula one teams in 2011.

Unlike Michelin who want the rules to be amended to allow a tire war next year, the Italian marque said it is happy to replace Bridgestone as the sport's sole supplier.

"We believe a single tire (supplier) is not incompatible with an exciting sporting spectacle," Pirelli's Paul Hembery is quoted as saying by German news agency SID.

Pirelli already supplies the FIA's world rally championship, as well as the new GP3 series.

HRT car 'not up to F1 standard' - Klien(GMM) HRT's 2010 car is not up to the standard of the sport's other teams, said Christian Klien after driving the F110 on Friday.

The team's new reserve and test driver is quoted by motorline.cc as confirming that his contract is for the entire 2010 season.

Despite contesting 48 grands prix dating back to 2004 and spending three full years as a test driver with works squads BMW and Honda, he received his new super license mere minutes before the 90-minute morning session began at Barcelona.

"The team has brought me in so I can give feedback to the engineers and compare the car with BMW and Honda," said the 27-year-old, who was half a second quicker than race regular Bruno Senna.

"The car is obviously not up to formula one-standard," added the Austrian. "It has much too little downforce and the details are not as good as with the other cars."

He explained that the Dallara-built car is "very difficult" to drive, insisting the Cosworth "engine is not the main problem".

Button not hurt by latest Briatore insult(GMM) Jenson Button insists he was not hurt when he read Flavio Briatore's latest jibes.

Before 30-year-old Button became world champion last year, the ousted, banned and disgraced former Renault boss likened his speed to a concrete roadside post.

And earlier this week, 60-year-old Briatore said the current world championship leader is not among F1's best five drivers.

"It made me laugh when I read it," said the McLaren driver in Barcelona. "I am very happy, he has got to try a bit harder.

"I am leading the championship and he is not in the sport," added Button.

But that could all change soon, in the wake of the FIA's deal to drop the legal wrangle with Briatore in exchange for letting him back in F1 in 2013.

In his latest interview, with the Gulf Times, Briatore said "I need to be in formula one".

Alonso 'having fun' with provocative comments(GMM) Recent comments by Fernando Alonso are an attempt to shift attention from the Spaniard, according to Jenson Button.

In the approach to this weekend's Spanish grand prix, the Ferrari driver provocatively said Lewis Hamilton is close to being penalized by race stewards for driving infractions.

And the double world champion also said he senses relationship "problems" between Hamilton and his McLaren teammate Button.

"Fernando is having a bit of fun with everyone," Button said in Barcelona.

"He's trying to move the focus away from himself a little bit. I'm very happy and I think Lewis is. We're getting on really well."

Button also sided with Hamilton in disapproving of Alonso's pit entry passing maneuver on his Ferrari teammate Felipe Massa three weeks ago in China.

The Italian team and its drivers have dismissed the rumblings about the incident, but Button admitted he would "be gutted if my teammate did that to me".

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